Remote Work Resources

Home Office Support for Extended Remote Work 

As many UC San Diego employees continue to work remotely, it is important for them to have a suitable home workspace. Supervisors should consider the options available to them to support employees during this extended period of remote work.

Learn more about home office support for extended remote work »

Managing Remote Teams

This interactive learning session is designed to help UC San Diego managers and supervisors adapt their supervisory toolkit to remote work, a landscape of rapid change, and the ongoing challenges of life in a pandemic.

Topics covered include:

• Setting expectations and goals and performance conversations
• Supporting development
• Collaborative problem solving and resources for employee challenges
• Engagement, connection and trust - team building during change
• Self-care and support

Stay tuned for details about future sessions of Managing Remote Teams. 

Quick Guide to Making Working Remotely Work for You

As you and your team adjust to working remotely, check out these tips for planning your day, optimizing your workspace, staying in touch with your colleagues and promoting a healthy work/life balance.

View Quick Guide to Making Working Remotely Work for You »

An important way to support social distancing measures is to consider canceling any non-essential staff or work-related meetings during this critical period of the COVID-19 situation. For essential meetings, it is strongly encouraged to conduct those meetings using technologies, such as Zoom, that do not require in-person gatherings. Zoom, a web-based teleconference and video conference solution, is available for all UC San Diego staff.

Learn more about Zoom:

• General information about Zoom »
• Zoom user guide »
• Frequently Asked Questions about Zoom »
• Visit the UC Learning Center for a curated list of short Zoom training videos »

Better Meetings with Zoom

Watch a recording of our virtual, instructor-led session on using Zoom to effectively conduct meetings. In this one-hour training led by your Human Resources team, you will learn the basics of using Zoom – including how to:

• Set up a meeting
• Manage participants
• Share screens and use tools for interaction
• Determine appropriate use of video

Watch Better Meetings with Zoom »

In addition to Zoom, UC San Diego employees have access to a range of technology tools and resources that can help facilitate remote work, such as G-Suite, Outlook Web Access (OWA), and OneDrive. 

To learn more about technology tools for remote work, visit this page of ITS resources »

Employees who are shifting to remote work should be mindful about creating an ergonomic home workstation. We encourage you to check out the online resources provided by our Environment, Heath and Safety team to learn how to optimize your workstation. These resources address both those who work at computers and those whose primary work is not computer-based. 

• Ergonomics Where You Work: Tips to Improve Your Home-based Office
• Ergonomics Where You Work: Back Support Tips to Improve Your Home-based Office

Learn more about virtual ergonomic training and assessment »

Any temporary remote work arrangement must be approved by the employee’s direct supervisor, who should consider what aspects of a job can be performed remotely, how appropriate communication can be maintained, and what technology is required to ensure access to appropriate administrative systems.

The terms of a temporary remote work arrangement should be explicitly approved and agreed upon by the supervisor and staff member. Time should also be set aside for supervisors and staff to discuss and review the terms of the arrangement to determine its effectiveness and any changes that might be needed, and to do so on an ongoing basis.

Download a PDF of the UC San Diego Temporary Remote Work Agreement (COVID-19) »

View the DocuSign version of the UC San Diego Temporary Remote Work Agreement (COVID-19) »

Tips for using DocuSign

• Do not use spaces after the email address or it will render it invalid.
• Managers/supervisors can edit what employees write.
  

Temporary Remote Work Arrangement - Outside of the United States

All requests to work remotely or telecommute from a location outside the United States require additional review and approvals. In addition to the supervisor, the department head will need to approve the arrangement and submit the request to the following units for review and approval:

• Vice Chancellor
  • Review risk and determine if a remote work arrangement outside of the US is appropriate.
• Campus Counsel
  • Provide guidance and evaluate potential risks to the University.
• Export Control
  • Evaluate potential export control risks.
  • Review what exports and export licenses are required.
  • Determine the potential costs that would be associated for licensing and exports.
• IT Services
  • Evaluate potential IT security risks.
• Sponsored Research Contracts and Grants (if applicable)
  • Foreign work or foreign component pre-approval may be required depending on the agency and award terms
• Human Resources/Academic Personnel/Office of Postdoctoral and Research Scholar Affairs
  • Provide guidance related to other employment compliance areas that need to be addressed such as tax and health care.
  • Review risk in consultation with other and determine if a remote work arrangement outside of the US is appropriate.

In general, working outside the US is not intended to be a long term solution. See http://blink.ucsd.edu/go/flextime for more information.

As UC San Diego modifies the ways in which we conduct business and interactions move online during the COVID-19 pandemic, please be mindful that general privacy requirements remain intact.

Learn more about videoconferencing precautions, protecting information while telecommuting, privacy during online exams and more »